THERE were growing calls last night for a judge-led inquiry into the Greville Janner affair as one of Britain’s top lawyers said those who suffered deserved “their day in court”.

Former Lord Chancellor Lord Falconer suggested the special hearing, known as a trial of facts, could test the allegations in Lord Janner’s absence.

Lord Janner, who has dementia, has been ruled unfit to stand trial to answer 22 charges of child sexual abuse.

Lord Falconer told BBC’s Today programme: “If it had been decided that he was unfit to plead, there is a procedure that allows for the facts to be heard and a view by a court to be formed as to whether or not the offences occurred.

“I can think of nothing more awful, if I was genuinely a victim, and I don’t know whether or not these are genuine victims or not, that I wasn’t given an opportunity for my case to be heard and if the court took the view it was true, my views to be validated.”

Lord Falconer said Alison Saunders, the Director of Public Prosecutions, was wrong to spare 86-year-old Lord Janner from standing trial.

Ms Saunders faced more scrutiny yesterday as it emerged that she began her legal career at the central London chambers where Labour peer Lord Janner was a top QC.

A review of the handling of the case is to be carried out by Sir Richard Henriques, but Plaid Cymru’s Elfyn Llwyd called for a judge-led inquiry to find out why two previous police investigations into Lord Janner, in 2002 and 2007, were suddenly dropped.

Mr Llwyd, who is a member of the Privy Council, which advises the monarchy on political matters, believes the former Leicester West MP is being protected by an establishment cover-up with “Cyril Smith overtones”.

He said: “I strongly believe a proper judge-led inquiry is needed.

“He has been at the centre of child abuse allegations for more than 20 years but, conveniently, nothing has ever stuck. It’s all very murky and I do believe some sort of cover-up is at work here.

“There are Cyril Smith overtones, in that it all seems to be coming out when it’s too late.”

Police investigated Lord Janner in 2002 but documents relating to the peer were not passed on to the CPS. Another probe in 2007 was abandoned.

Lord Janner was first named as a paedophile during the 1991 trial of former Leicester care home boss Frank Beck, who was jailed for sexually and physically abusing more than 100 children during the 1970s and 1980s.